W&m Shut Down In Second Half

November 28, 1993|By DAVE FAIRBANK Daily Press

LAKE CHARLES, LA. — One of William and Mary's most successful football seasons ended in the Louisiana bayou as McNeese State came from behind for a 34-28 victory in the first round of the Division I-AA playoffs.

McNeese State (10-2) won its eighth consecutive game and will face Troy State (11-0-1) here next week in a quarterfinal playoff game.

The Tribe (9-3) didn't score in the second half and was forced to play almost an entire half without record-setting quarterback Shawn Knight, who was forced to the sideline with an injured wrist.

Knight returned late in the third quarter and led a last-ditch drive after McNeese's Jose Larios had kicked a 25-yard field goal for a 34-28 lead with 1:52 remaining.

Knight drove the Tribe from its 31-yard line to the McNeese 24-yard line with 1:02 remaining. But Knight threw an incompletion, and Derek Fitzgerald was stopped for a 1-yard gain.

Knight hit wide receiver Matt Byrne for a 3-yard gain on 3rd-and-9. On fourth down at the 20 with 24 seconds remaining, Knight's pass intended for Corey Ludwig fell incomplete, and the Tribe's eight-game win streak came to an end.

McNeese State put together scoring drives on its first two possessions of the second half as the Tribe offense went three plays-and-out on each of its first two possessions.

Joseph directed a 12-play touchdown drive, 11 of which were runs, on the first possession. Henry Fields went the last six yards for the touchdown, and Joseph ran in a 2-point conversion to tie the game at 28.

After a W&M punt, Larios capped a 53-yard drive with a 25-yard field goal for a 31-28 lead.

The Cowboys were their own worst enemies in the first half by losing four fumbles. The Tribe took advantage, turning three of the turnovers into touchdowns on the way to a 28-20 halftime lead.

Two of McNeese's fumbles came deep in its territory, and W&M put together short scoring drives. The Tribe went 38 yards for its first touchdown and 18 for its final score of the half, Keen's third short touchdown run, and the 28-20 lead with 14 seconds remaining.

McNeese did most of its damage passing in the half. Joseph hit Adam Henry for a 63-yard scoring bomb and Skeet Owens on a 55-yard heave for two of the Cowboys' three touchdowns. Joseph threw for 132 yards in the first half, which is what the Tribe defense allowed per game coming in.

McNeese's other touchdown came following a muffed kickoff return that the Tribe's Mark McCain couldn't handle, and the Cowboys recovered at the Tribe 8-yard line. McCain redeemed himself with a 38-yard kickoff return midway through the second quarter, setting up the Tribe at its 48-yard line and giving Durkin some room to operate on his first appearance.

Durkin, who had to replace Knight midway through the second quarter of the Delaware game in mid-September, directed a 10-play, 52-yard touchdown drive. He completed 3 of 4 passes on the drive for 30 yards, and Keen scored from the 1. Chris Dawson's point after gave the Tribe a 21-20 lead with 3:50 remaining in the half.

W&M was making its third appearance in the playoffs in the last five years and its fourth appearance overall. The Tribe went in 1989 and '90 and would have been invited last year had the players not voted the previous spring to make a postseason trip to Japan and miss a chance at the playoffs.

W&M lost to Delaware in the first round of the playoffs in 1986 and in the first round to Furman in '89. In '90 the Tribe defeated Massachusetts in the first round before falling at Central Florida in the quarterfinals. McNeese State was making its third consecutive appearance in the playoffs. The Cowboys lost to Nevada in the first round in 1990 and advanced to the quarterfinals last year, where they lost to Northern Iowa.